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From the early 19th century until the mid 20th century, steamships coming into St Thomas were fueled by coal carried onto the ships by the “coal ladies” who balanced the laden baskets atop their heads. Payment was one tally per basket, with the tallies redeemed for cash or goods.
These highly collectible notched brass coal tallies are the size of a US quarter and have been painstakingly cleaned and polished by hand. The bezeled tallies are on a 24” cobra design vintage brass chain while the unbezeled tallies are on an 18” vintage brass chain.
Each comes with a descriptive insert bearing a photo of the coal ladies and explaining the history of that period.
The bezeled tallies are $95 each and the unbezeled are $75.
For any other information and how to purchase, please either email castes-73713@mypacks.net or telephone (340) 715-1842.
Posted : May 24, 2012 6:18 pm
Or, if on STT, you could just go to The Pirate's Chest, in the Port of Sale Mall, across from ScotiaBank, where we has over 150 of them...in varying states of cleanliness, from aged, to pristine, loose, or wrapped in sterling silver with an adjustable leather necklace. As I know the history of them, they were ONLY redeemable at the WICO company store, not for cash...it was, basically, another form of slavery...and the coal tokens come with a certificate of authenticity. Prices are the same, but you get to actually choose the one you want...as some have the holes punched in them, like in this photo (the ones with the holes were for the workers that worked at night), and some don't. Come on in!
Posted : May 24, 2012 9:02 pm
